At last, it is almost here. With the 2024 NHL trade deadline just four days away, there have been weeks of conjecture, trade rumors, and even a few agreements.
Given how close the deadline is, we have created a helpful cheat sheet that you can review to see what each NHL team needs before Friday at 3 p.m. ET. This includes information on what the teams need to buy or sell, what they need to trade, what they shouldn’t trade, and their crucial salary-cap position.
Join us as we examine each squad individually to help you prepare for Friday, the deadline.
Sellers or buyers: Merchants
Situation with the salary cap: $34 million is anticipated to be available for the rest of the season.
The best trade assets are goalie John Gibson (committed through 2026–27 at $6.4 million per season), winger Frank Vatrano (signed through 2024–25 at $3.6 million per season), and center Adam Henrique (pending UFA).
Leo Carlsson, Mason McTavish, and any of their best prospects are the untouchables.
What they need: While the Ducks’ rebuild is still very much an ongoing process, they are beginning to approach the stage where it is reasonable to anticipate them competing for a postseason berth. Leading them at forward are Leo Carlsson, Mason McTavish, and the newly acquired Cutter Gauthier from the Philadelphia Flyers. They have an extremely good young core of skill.
They have the opportunity to make at least a few more big moves before Friday, having already completed two noteworthy ones (Ilya Lyubushkin and Jamie Drysdale). Given his contract status and production, Henrique looks certain to be traded, but Vatrano could be able to bring back a sizable return due to his relatively cheap contract through the next season.
Sellers or buyers: Merchants
Situation with salary caps: $13.9 million in available space
Top trading commodities: Moving forward Defensemen Joshua Brown (pending UFA), Troy Stecher (pending UFA), Matt Dumba (pending UFA), and Jason Zucker (pending UFA)
Clayton Keller and Logan Cooley are the untouchables.
What they require: From one perspective, Cooley and Keller are the only untouchable players on the NHL roster; with Arizona’s lackluster performance in the last ten years, any player may be vulnerable. However, this is hardly a circumstance that calls for a complete overhaul.
At the very least, this team has a talented core and a chance to begin slowly making their way back into the playoffs.
The Coyotes’ lack of an NHL player under contract for the upcoming season makes defense their most pressing short-term need. Every defensive player currently in the NHL is either an unrestricted free agency or an upcoming restricted free agent. Regaining defensive support should undoubtedly take precedence if they choose to deal someone like Lawson Crouse or Nick Schmaltz.
Sellers or buyers: Purchasers
Situation regarding salary caps: $57,500 in salary-cap headroom
Top trading commodities: Moving forward Goalie Linus Ullmark (committed through 2024–25 at $5 million), prospect Fabian Lysell, prospect John Beecher, and 2025 first-round pick are all potential players. Jake DeBrusk is pending UFA.
David Pastrňák, Brad Marchand, Charlie McAvoy, and Jeremy Swayman are the untouchables.
What they require: Although it wasn’t apparent at the beginning of the season, the Bruins could use some more depth at center. They require defense. Charlie McAvoy is fantastic, but Hampus Lindholm is out with an injury, and the depth falls down quickly after those two.
All advanced possession and scoring-chance metrics combined show that the Bruins are merely an ok to below-average defensive team that depends too much on their goalies.
And speaking of which, there may be a case to be made for opening up Ullmark. Numerous teams require assistance with goaltending, and the Bruins would still have Swayman as their starting goalie, who can take up the role. Additionally, it would help free up some salary-cap room for this season and the following one.
Because of their weak farm system and reduced pool of draft picks, the Bruins don’t have many excellent trade assets. As a result, they may need to be resourceful, particularly in locating salary-cap space. Why not approach things from a strong position.
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